Cate Blanchett defends straight actors playing gay roles

Cate Blanchett has defended straight actors playing gay roles.

The 49-year-old actress - who has four children with her husband Andrew Upton - played a lesbian character in Todd Haynes' 'Carol' and believes sexuality should not affect what roles people can take on.

She told The Hollywood Reporter: "It speaks to something that I'm quite passionate about in storytelling generally, but in film specifically, is that film can be quite a literal medium.

"And I will fight to the death for the right to suspend disbelief and play roles beyond my experience. I think reality television and all that that entails had an extraordinary impact, a profound impact on the way we view the creation of character.

"I think it provides a lot of opportunity, but the downside of it is that we now, particularly in America, I think, we expect and only expect people to make a profound connection to a character when it's close to their experience.

"Part of being an actor to me, it's an anthropological exercise. So you get to examine a timeframe, a set of experiences, an historical event that you didn't know anything about. But also I'm about to play a character whose political persuasions are entirely different to my own, but part of the pleasure is trying to work out what makes her tick."

Cate also revealed that it was difficult to get 'Carol' made, even when both she and Rooney Mara were attached to star.

She said: "The film, I think now would be made in a heartbeat, but eight years ago, it was a very difficult film to get up.

"Two women, both of whom are of lesbian-ish persuasion in the 1950s, which is like 'who wants to go and see that? Only 12-year-old boys go to movies.' Thank goodness we're changing the demographic of the critics who write for Rotten Tomatoes.

"For me if something is difficult to make, it's like a red rag to a bull. It makes me want to make it more."